Little Angels of the Night

SUMMARY

Restaurant owner Roman Vail wants to arrange a date with a patron named Mary, but she rejects him. He watches through the window as she leaves and a blonde hooker pulls up in a car across the street - Vail squints dramatically.

Next thing you know, the hooker, who resides in the apartments across from Vail's Italian restaurant, answers a knock on her door and gets killed. WHO COULD IT BE?

This week’s client, Madam Smith, explains to the Angels that this was the second "working girl" murdered in her building. Charlie arranges for them to take up residence in the building as working girls, and everyone acts flustered until he adds, "in name only" (because one of these times he's going to assign them covers as REAL hookers?).

The (mostly) swimsuit-clad Angels arrive poolside at the apartment house and meet two of the friendly resident prostitutes, Bonnie and Carol. Freddie, the punk delivery guy from Vail's restaurant, soon arrives with a pizza and hits on everyone. Next he delivers another pizza and more hitting-on to Melanie, another hooker in the building, and gets upset when she rejects his weak advances.

Back at the restaurant, Mary has brought some guy to theatrically flirt with over dinner while Vail jealously eyes them.

Bonnie arrives at her apartment and is attacked by somebody in the hallway. Kris and Kelly sprint to the rescue, Kelly pursuing the guy down the stairwell. He throws a fire extinguisher at her, causing her to put her face to the wall and keep it there long after the canister has landed, and the mystery assailant simply runs right past her. Miss Garrett is defeated.

The Angels convene at poolside with Dr. Edgars, a police psychologist who can barely stop gawking at passing girls in bikinis long enough to explain that the murderer must be acting on displaced aggression, considering all the victims have been blonde prostitutes.

Next, the Angels and Melanie are trying to convince a frightened Bonnie not to leave town. She tells them that the man who attacked her smelled like a restaurant; Melanie insists it was Freddie the pizza freak. Call-girl Kris gets a request from a man named Jim Walker, who wants her to meet with him on his yacht, and specifically asks if she is blonde.

Kris drives to the marina, leaving Sabrina peeping from the passenger seat of her Cobra while she boards Mr. Walker's moored yacht. He's a suave older man who has her immediately change into a bikini to engage in awkward chit-chat about his marital problems. When he creepily comments that she's smarter than the murdered hooker, Kris gets spooked and attempts to leave. He stops her and hands her a $100 bill for her advice, but she declines and leaves.

Later, Carol gets murdered in the apartment's elevator, and we're not very surprised to see that it's Roman Vail who's behind the strangulation. He purposely drops a shark tooth necklace next to Carol's corpse before leaving the scene. Afterwards, Sabrina quickly theorizes that the necklace was dropped there intentionally since its clasp is not broken. Kris and Kelly make frowny faces and have to have this explained to them.

Back in her apartment, Bonnie is freaking out even more. They ask her if she's ever seen anyone wearing a shark tooth necklace, and they are all shocked when she names Freddie, even though he was wearing it when he met them.

Mary flirts with another guy at the restaurant again while Roman watches. Kris and Kelly arrive for lunch and casually grill him about Freddie and the shark tooth necklace. He mentions that Freddie said he lost his, and they leave to go find him. He's making another delivery to Melanie, which of course goes badly - he loses his temper, tries to force her door, then makes a hasty getaway. Sabrina and Kris come running, but lose Freddie after a repetitive and dizzying chase down many flights of stairs.

Bosley, who we forgot was in this episode, appears to announce that apartment 4F is locked from the inside. Eventually the girls reach the obvious conclusion that the missing Freddy is holed up inside. They go flush him out, and then spend a while bitchily grilling him about his lost necklace. Melanie shows up just long enough to perform her only purpose in the scene, irritating Freddie into blowing his top so Sabrina can scream at him. Eventually they learn that Vail couldn’t have known about the missing necklace; Sabrina realizes that Freddie’s not the bad guy because Melanie isn’t blonde, as a segway to remembering that Kris exists.

Of course Blondie’s dining solo at Vail’s restaurant right then, and witnesses him having words with Mary (who's just been flirt-dining with yet another guy). She leaves, and he’s left alone with Kris; disco action music starts playing as he advances on Kris in strangle mode. Their stunt doubles tear up the restaurant until everyone else bursts in. Vail flees on a stolen ten-speed bike, and the other follow suit - until he gets hit by a car and switches into whimper mode, thinking Kris is Mary, to whom he was evidently once married and still loves. She takes pity on him and kinda plays along.

Back at the office, Charlie agrees to let them all go skiing (why wasn't Terror on Skis right after this?) except for Bosley, who has to go back to Madam Smith's building and fix the plumbing. "Oh, Bosley!"

FILMING LOCATIONS

WHAT'D YOU THINK?

Rate this episode:

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CURIOSITIES

• Madam Smith, the client and housemother to the hookers, tells the Angels “These girls’ lives are not as glamorous as you might think...I should know.” First off, we're sure that three former policewomen/detectives don’t think being a prostitute is very glamorous, and as for the “I should know” part, um… yuck. That’s an overshare, Dolly. An overshare.

• Does Mary eat at this restaurant for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day?

• Same for the hookers - does anybody in that apartment building eat anything else? Why does Melanie keep ordering pizzas that she knows will be delivered by a guy who she believes to be a serial strangler?

• When they're all sitting around the office round table, what's going on with Sabrina? Is she in a child-sized chair, kneeling, sitting on Kelly's lap, or what?

• Why is Dr. Edgars drooling over random bimbos around the pool but not interested at all in the Angels, particularly Kris who is also wearing a swimsuit and looking none too shabby?

• Why is Kate wearing a wedding ring, and why is her pinkie is bandaged within an inch of its life?

• In the scene after Carol gets killed, Kris is chewing gum in the first shot, but then it disappears.

• Do Sabrina and Kris chase Freddie down more flights of stairs than there are floors in the apartment building?

• Vail calls Sgt. Mathews "Lieutenant" in one scene.

• Vail gets hit by a car at the end, and the driver just switches to "park" and stays sitting there. Wouldn't you want to maybe get out and see if the guy you hit is okay, or try to talk to the Angels?

ANGELS STRANGLED

BIMBOS

SHOTS FIRED AT ANGELS

SHOTS FIRED BY ANGELS

DAYS TO SOLVE CASE

CHARACTER DEATHS

TURTLENECKS

BIKINIS

ACTION

The Angels spend too much time running up and down the same stairway chasing the wrong suspect. Kris gets thrown around a restaurant like a rag doll in a strangle-fight that actually ends in a draw, but at least she held her own longer than the other victims. The climax is an uneventful ten-speed bike ride, which is one of the lamest chase methods you could possibly write. At least the bad guy gets hit by a car at the end.

EXPOSITION ANGELS

Kris gets saddled with one of those "time to make The Smart One look smart" lines; when Sabrina wonders if the dropped necklace was careless or deliberate, Kris goes "What do you mean?" and Kelly looks equally lost. Then after Sabrina explains, Kelly has the nerve to look smug like they've all outsmarted the guy together. Times like these, you wonder how these two even got through the academy.

FASHION

This episode features a whole lot of swimwear for no good reason. Kelly dons a bikini, Kris gets a bikini and two different swimsuits. The blue terrycloth shoulderless number Bri wears by the pool is as close to sexy swimwear as she is gonna get. While at the office, she holds down the bar in grandma attire involving taupe ruffles and knit shawls while Kelly and Kris seem slightly more dressed up than usual.

Wardrobe Repeats
Sabrina revives her blue terrycloth thing later for Angels in Vegas (minus the straps - hubba hubba!) and the waitresses in Vail's restaurant (or is there just one walking by over and over?) are wearing that same red outfit introduced by Kelly in I Will Be Remembered. Kris repeats the navy blue top seen in her mystery intro clip and Pretty Angels, which Gert from Angels on Skates somehow got hold of later.

Little

Vegas

Little

Intro

Pretty

Skates

SCREEN TIME ANALYSIS

No plot twists to report here. Pretty balanced, and a good level of Angel content.

VERY UNPOSITIVE DETECTIVE WORK

The Angels get owned too many times in this one - the guy throws the fire extinguisher at Kelly, and she cowers in the corner until he's long gone and Kris has to come see if she's okay. Later she comes to scope out the mysterious locked apartment (armed, of course); Freddie simply gives her a shove and she's out of commission. Sabrina also stands back and whines "Aww, noooo!" for several seconds before starting to chase him. It actually takes Bosley to trap Freddie, otherwise these two would have lost him for good. Last is Kris' battle with the strangler - it ended as a draw since the others burst in and made him run away, but if we had to make a points decision, it really looked like Vail would've won.

RECYCLED PLOT ALERT

Blondes were getting lookalike-murdered in The Sandcastle Murders only three episodes ago, which called for Kris to be attacked again (surprise!). If they insist on using exactly the same plot, couldn't they have at least separated these two a little more?

DELETED SCENES

An earlier draft of the script (which was originally written with Jill in mind, as her name appears several times instead of Kris') has a few amusing differences:

Meeting Bonnie and Carol

CAROL
When Bonnie says all, she means all. Fresh out of Omaha for the first time in her life.

KELLY
Omaha?

BONNIE
Nebraska.

KELLY
I know.

SABRINA
(helpfully) Kelly’s very up on geography.

Angels' apartment

At the end of this small scene, Bonnie exits the Angels' apartment and is attacked in the hallway. This is why Kelly and Kris are nearby to hear her screaming.INT. ANGELS’ APARTMENT – KRIS, KELLY AND BONNIE

BONNIE
Too bad you couldn’t make that trick with Carol yesterday. Very heavy tippers.

KELLY
Can I ask you something?

BONNIE
Sure.

KELLY
What made you decide to get into – – the business?

BONNIE
(shrugs) About the only other thing I can do is type. But I’m a lousy speller. (beat) Listen, if you need anything… I’m in 3A. See ya.

KRIS
Bye.

Bonnie exits.

Kris' date with Mr. Walker

Kris originally insisted that her “date” with Mr. Walker be in the middle of Rancho Park. He’s creepier, but talks less about his wife. Kris keeps the money.Walker reaches out and takes Kris’s hand. She’s uneasy but goes along with it.

WALKER
You have lovely hands.

KRIS
Thank you.

WALKER
Don’t get me wrong. I also love your eyes…

KRIS
(wondering where this is going) Mr. Walker… Jim…

WALKER
And your hair is smashing… so full… and blonde…

He strokes her hair. She becomes very uneasy.

At the end of the scene…

WALKER
It’s getting late. I’m afraid I must be leaving you now. I’m sorry I can’t see you home, but this should cover your cab fare.

He reaches into his pocket, withdraws a bill and folding it, hands it to Kris.

Kris looks at it.

KRIS
A hundred dollar bill?

WALKER
Yes. Isn’t that the usual, uh..

KRIS
Oh, yes, of course. But haven’t you left out a step? I mean, all we did was talk.

WALKER
And so consider that payment for your time.

KRIS
That is very generous of you.

WALKER
I can afford it. And spending time with a beautiful and charming girl such as yourself helps soothe the pain of a shrewish wife in a spiteful marriage.

KRIS
Oh… I’m sorry…

WALKER
Oh the contrary. I’m very grateful. Perhaps I’ll see you again. Good day.

As she looks at the hundred dollar bill, shrugs, pockets it and walks off.

Bosley's toilet

This scene happens just before Kris, Kelly, and Sgt. Mathews go to Vail’s restaurant:

INT. APARTMENT – BATHROOM

Bosley in bathroom with plunger, flushes toilet as tenant, an OLD WOMAN, watches.

OLD WOMAN
Is it fixed yet?
BOSLEY
Lady, I’m trying my best.
OLD WOMAN
What kind of handyman are you? Can’t fix a toilet.

Bosley gives her a look.

BOSLEY
Lady, I don’t have to do this for a living, you know. I have an independent income.
OLD WOMAN
I hope so for your sake. You do this for a living, you’d starve to death.

He gives her another of his “looks.”

BIMBO REPORT

Charlie's playing backgammon with some girl in huge glasses who strips down to her bikini in the middle of their game. At the office wrap-up scene they're STILL playing, but she’s wearing a different bikini… ?

OUR TAKE

Greg's Rating: Any episode that features Bri undercover as a hooker sitting next to a swimming pool in a thick terrycloth sleeveless sweat outfit is probably going to be right up my alley. A lot of running up and down the same hallway (see Angel in a Box) and the hooker cover is really not all that convincing (see terrycloth) but it was kinda fun, kinda suspenseful and Melanie the hooker is the sassiest sista to guest star since Candy from Night Of The Strangler.

Anna's Rating: How come there's never a rash of lookalike brunette murders? I like this one a lot, but it loses points for numerous moments when the girls are just painfully dumb and useless. I know it has to be written so that all ages watching at home can follow along and solve the case along with the Angels, but shouldn't we be left feeling that the Angels are more competent detectives than we are? Logic aside, it's just fun. Also, compared to what's on TV today, it's kind of amazing that you could even make a show about strangling hookers this kid-friendly. I mean, okay, they kinda show you a murder, but you'd never guess what prostitution was by watching this (or you'd guess that it meant sitting around in different outfits, which I must've thought when I saw this as a kid). Ah, simpler times.

Totally fun episode. I mean how can you NOT like “Freddy the Pizza Creep”? And by the way, during the big getaway wasn’t it lucky for them to come across five unlocked bicycles, three girl bikes (for the Angels) and two boy bikes (for the villain and for Bosley)???

xman

What’s the deal with the pizza boxes in this episode? You think that they are plain white boxes….right up until you get a glimpse of the bottom of the box when you realize that they are shown flipped over through most of the episode. I wondered if the show got the boxes from a local place and didn’t want to give free advertising to “Villapiano’s pizza” or something.

When Freddie delivers pizza to the pool, you briefly see colors on the bottom of the box as he hands it over. Later when he has his argument with Melanie, he smashes the box against her door and you can clearly see the word pizza with an italian color scheme. So my free advertising idea is out the window, but why else would they flip the boxes? Seems odd to not want to display a completely generic pizza box.

Nice to see Kate and Cheryl share some scenes together without Jaclyn in this episode.

Vavessey

So rare to see them in so many scenes together

Vavessey

Kate is wearing a band aid because if you watch closely as she pulls her bike out at the end of the episode to chase the bad guy, she hursts her hand/finger. Ouch

Pnyc1969

Is it a California thing I just don’t get? So much friendliness and camaraderie among the working girls. Such a cordial reception for the angels. And I have never heard of prostitutes living in so lovely an apartment complex with a pool and a building manageress/den mother willing and eager to hire private detectives on their behalf. Nice folks all. Those terse, cynical hookers in “Street” could take a lesson. (Wow! Both eps had a Freddie!) Why would Mary eat at her ex-husband’s restaurant so often, especially since he’s such a pain in the ass/murderer? Did she get half the place in the settlement? Kris wears her ugliest bikini ever for her “date”. It’s rust colored! But Kelly’s powder blue bikini is beautiful. Melanie! It’s all about Melanie really. I’d have liked her to return in “Hiding” as one of Dale Woodman’s wanna be models just to have her end up back as a hooker/pizza eater. Julie would’ve cut her down.

Amber

can we not get some love for the giant round macramé wall hanging appearing for at least the third time in the series?

Larry Hamblin

I laughed out loud when I saw the macramé photo Amber. Maybe they’ll do a segment on famous props that were used over and over. Wouldn’t it be great to own it. Like everything, it’s in a landfill.

pnyc1969

Sabrina’s finger is also bandaged in “The Jade Trap”. Maybe scene filming overlapped or it was a bad injury. RE Greg’s comment, Melanie was fun and the actress seemed very talented but I really love Candy. She was so beautiful and elegant. She might have made a good replacement for Tiff. The entire plot of “Hiding” and Julie’s “top school for models” backstory would’ve fit perfectly for Candy.

xman

The page for Madam Smith’s apartments notes that the pool scenes were actually filmed in a different location. The pool scenes were filmed at 13900 Fiji Way in Marina Del Rey at the Villa Venetia apartments. With google images, you can clearly make out the pool area as it has changed very little since filming. Archstone bought the property so the name may have changed or is about to.